Abstract
In this study, two common nonwoven fibrous dressings, based on carboxymethylcellulose and alginate, and their silver-treated forms were evaluated in order to compare their performance characteristics including fluid handling capacity, the mechanical properties, and the thermal behavior. The effect of immersing the dressings in the two fluids (solution A and distilled water) on pH was also studied. The results show some clear differences between the untreated and silver-treated dressings, for example the fluid handling and the swelling values of the dressings were reduced due to silver treatment. More considerably, changes were observed in the tensile properties which were decreased when these dressing were treated with the silver. There was no considerable effect on the thermal characteristics of the dressings upon the silver treatment. Statistically significant differences were observed in the pH over time for all tested specimens and also for both test fluids.